In The Year That Made the Musical: 1924 and the Glamour of Musical Theater, William Everett offers a fresh approach to studying what he considers a pivotal moment in musical theater history. The book appears at first glance to be a singularly focused work structured around an exploration of musical theater in the year 1924; however, it quickly becomes clear that Everett positions this year within a rich and illuminating context. I find that his approach can best be described through the metaphor of a flowing river, intersecting with other waters, changing direction, and shaping the landscape. Everett examines this year from multiple, overlapping perspectives, beginning with a deeper investigation of the many historical events and social, political, and cultural circumstances that led like tributaries into the stream of musical theater in the United States. He argues that 1924 is the year in which the current began to surge. As Everett notes: “Echoes of the previous decade (and even earlier) rippled into the present and intrepid visions of the future were constantly bubbling and gurgling” (6). His examination considers how at this time, the world of musical theater felt the effects of diverse tributaries: the devastation of the Great War and the influenza epidemic of 1918–1920, the rise of fascism and new political figures in Europe, the legalization of institutionalized racism in the United States, the rise in popularity of sports and physical fitness, and the birth of the Jazz Age. Theater responded with glamour, nowhere more clearly than in the genre of the revue.

Everett focuses in particular on the success of such theatrical institutions as Follies (1907–1931) produced by Florenz Ziegfeld and Scandals (1919–1939) produced by George White, as well as Artists and Models (1923–1930) produced by Lee and J. J. Schubert. Therein he gives a glittering description of the glamour of the era as reflected in the revues of the age, describing in vivid detail the fashion (including designer Lucile, or Lady Duff Gordon) and dance (foxtrot, Charleston, and Black bottom; Apache, tango and java) of the period. He also treats the star performers, Fred and Adele Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edie Cantor and Fanny Brice, Marilyn Miller, and Billie Burke, just to name a few.

The rise of the musical revue put this musical genre into direct competition with older forms of theatrical entertainment, namely opera and operetta. This tension was underscored by the deaths of major musical figures of the preceding era, including Giacomo Puccini and Victor Herbert, as new voices burst onto the scene, such as Jerome Kern, Oscar Hammerstein II, and George Gershwin, among others. This tension between old and new and the creation of a modern sensibility forms a major theme of Everett’s work.

One of Everett’s most significant contributions is his examination of how the current of musical theater in 1924 flowed into international waters. Everett adds a new depth to our understanding of the relationship between the musical in the United States and its relatives abroad, as well as the life of the American musical as an exported cultural product. He argues that “in the 1920s, adaptations for transnational markets formed a major part of the theatrical ecosystem” (32). Everett explores United States shows performed abroad, particularly in London, but also musical theater composers such as Kern, who wrote works in Europe for European markets including Sally (1920), The Cabaret Girl (1922), and The Beauty Prize (1923), all created for London. He likewise describes works written for the United States but with plots that took place abroad, as in the Italian setting of Wildflower (1923).

Everett also shines a light on the intersections and impacts of race and ethnicity in the period’s musicals. He discusses the impact of the all-black musical with such works as Shuffle Along (1921) by the songwriting team of Eubie Blake and Noble Sissle with a book by comedic duo Flournoy Miller and Aubrey Lyles, Runnin’ Wild (1923) by James P. Johnson and lyricist Cecil Mack, and Chocolate Dandies (1924). He also provides an insightful discussion of the portrayal of other ethnicities in the musical as in Rosemarie (1924), which tells the story of the interactions between white settlers and Indigenous peoples in Canada.

Everett’s exploration of the role of women throughout the book is notable. In particular, he highlights composer, author, and playwright Clare Kummer (1873–1958), one of many women who were adapting European works for the Broadway stage, noting the success of her one act-musicals. For these shows Kummer wrote both books and music, such as in Choir Rehearsal and Chinese Love. Thus, her dialogue existed alongside that of few notable contemporaries, though later figures such as Frank Loesser (The Most Happy Fella, 1956; Greenwillow, 1960), Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton, 2015), and Michael R. Jackson (A Strange Loop, 2019) did the same. Everett also discusses the popularity of operettas with themes about historical women who rose to great positions in society—Catherine (1923) and Madame Pompadour (1922)—as well as the familiarity of the Cinderella trope or rags-to-riches stories found in works such as Poppy (1923) and The Chiffon Girl (1924).

The greatest strength of Everett’s book is perhaps its chronological approach. The author groups the chapters of the text into four sections, roughly corresponding to the four seasons of a year. In doing so, he is able to provide a broad survey of theatrical activity within the year’s chronology, neatly highlighting peaks and valleys in production, overlapping shows and artists, and small-scale and gradually emerging changes in content and esthetics, for example, the shift from “visual opulence” to “smartness” in the revue.

Overall, The Year That Made the Musical: 1924 and the Glamour of Musical Theater offers a meticulous, well-researched, and nuanced overview of a year in theater history. Everett’s book is an excellent research resource for anyone interested in pursuing scholarship on theater in the first half of the twentieth century, with many threads introduced and waiting to be pulled.